Time is the Key
“Many things require time to achieve,” is a viewpoint raised by Xu Zhiyuan in the preview of the sixth season of “Thirteen Invitations.” From an unknown intellectual on social media to a talk show host whose single-viewer count has exceeded one billion, Xu Zhiyuan has used five years to bring his and his friends’ views of the world into the public eye, at the same time establishing a cultural IP with unique style like “Thirteen Invitations.”
It turns out that nothing in the world can be accomplished with a single stroke, even for those people or companies with abundant resources and deep heritage. In the past five years, while some new automakers have achieved monthly sales figures of 10,000 from scratch, some traditional carmakers have established matrix-style layouts of electric vehicles from scratch. “Rapid change” is the keyword of the Internet era, but a perfect system still requires time to be established, just as we see now that the pure electric vehicle market is still on the road to completeness.
Before 2021, the high-end electric vehicle market was still in its infancy, and the products we were exposed to were mostly in the market price range under 500,000 yuan. Thus, an opinion arose that if it were not for policy reasons or the urgent need to solve transportation problems, and if more money were available to choose from different car products, would you still buy an electric vehicle?
This opinion directly negated the possibility of the existence of the high-end electric vehicle market. However, one year later, we saw BBA, Porsche, and high-tech emerging brands like Hycan join forces to launch high-end pure electric vehicles priced above 500,000 yuan. What is the reason for this?
Demand is the key to opening the door to the market. Although the first group of electric vehicle users were troubled by range anxiety and the imperfect energy supply system, long-term experience has made some people realize that electric vehicles can provide an upgraded experience compared to fuel vehicles. They have faster acceleration, free of jerks from complicated mechanical gearboxes, quieter, and lower cost. Therefore, high-end electric vehicles are not a false proposition. Of course, this market still needs time to integrate more diverse products to make it more robust and reach more users.## Innovation BMW iX, M60, and xDrive 40 to Launch in China, Establishing a More Diversified Luxury EV Market
Following the introduction of the innovation BMW iX xDrive 50, BMW has now brought the more powerful innovation BMW iX M60 and the base version BMW iX xDrive 40 into the Chinese market, with the intention of establishing a more diversified portfolio of high-end electric vehicles.
The innovation BMW iX M60 and BMW iX xDrive 40 have retail prices of RMB 996,900 and RMB 746,900, respectively. The innovation BMW iX family of three models has a minimalist design, Shy Tech invisible technology, innovative digital luxury, uncompromising BMW electric driving pleasure, and a consistent sustainable concept. Meanwhile, the innovation BMW iX M60, BMW iX xDrive50, and BMW iX xDrive 40 have unique strengths in power, range, and configuration, providing consumers with rich personalized choices. The innovation BMW iX xDrive 40 will begin delivery in January 2022, and the innovation BMW iX M60 is expected to begin delivery in the middle of the year.
The innovation BMW iX M60 is equipped with the M-exclusive electric drive system, and the vehicle has a range of up to 566 kilometers under the WLTP standard. The dual motors release a maximum output power of 455 kilowatts (619 horsepower), with a zero-to-100-kilometer-per-hour acceleration time of only 3.8 seconds and a minimum 21.7-kilowatt-hour energy consumption per 100 kilometers. When the sports mode is activated and the launch control is engaged, the vehicle will generate a maximum torque of 1,100 newton-meters, becoming BMW’s first model with a torque of over 1,000 newton-meters. The vehicle has a top speed of up to 250 kilometers per hour, making it BMW’s fastest electric production car to date.
# Innovation BMW iX xDrive 40
The innovative BMW iX xDrive 40 is focused on urban mobility, with a range of up to 455 km under CLTC standards. Its dual electric motors deliver a maximum power output of 240 kW (326 horsepower), with acceleration from zero to 100 km/h in 6.1 seconds and a minimum energy consumption of 18.0 kWh per 100 km. The new vehicle is equipped with two charging ports: fast DC charging and home charging. Fast DC charging can accept a maximum charging power of 100 kW, and the battery can be charged from 10% to 80% in just 41 minutes.
No M, no BMW
In the electric vehicle market, performance seems to be the cheapest product feature. When the sub-4-second acceleration time is applied to the 300,000-level electric vehicle market, people unconsciously consider the performance of electric vehicles to be within reach.
But the reality is not so simple, because acceleration can be quantified, but handling cannot. Handling is the expertise of the high-performance departments of traditional car manufacturers, as well as an essential means of building core competitiveness for their products in the high-end electric vehicle market. In 2022, the 50th anniversary of the BMW M brand, the launch of the revolutionary BMW iX M60 marks a new milestone. What kind of sparks will M and pure electric products rub out?
The innovative BMW iX M60 is equipped with multiple hardcore chassis technologies, such as front double-wishbone and rear five-link suspension, M-exclusive adaptive air suspension and electronic controlled shock absorbers, xDrive all-wheel drive, rear axle active steering, and M sport braking system, which bring users BMW’s iconic driving experience, flexibility, and precision.
Traditional fuel performance cars not only offer a strong thrust when the gas pedal is pressed but also provide sensory stimulation through the powerful engine sounds. This feature is an innate drawback of electric vehicles, but the BMW iX M60 is equipped with the BMW electric car sound simulation, specially made by world-renowned composer Hans Zimmer for BMW M electric vehicles, which offers multiple sensory experiences and enhances the joy of driving.In terms of appearance, the BMW iX M60 features personalized M design elements, blue M high-performance brake calipers, BMW personalized customized titanium gold exterior components, and unique high-gloss black titanium gold edge M logo, and every detail highlights the innovative BMW iX M60’s high-performance identity. In addition, the model can also be equipped with exclusive titanium gold 22-inch aerodynamic wheels.
In terms of configuration, the innovative BMW iX M60 has 20 BMW first-time applications, and comes standard with 35 luxury configurations such as the Bowers & Wilkins 4D diamond surround sound system, an infrared heating technology-based Comfort Heating Package, and the Automatic Parking Assist Pro system. Worth mentioning is that the first-time Automatic Parking Assist Pro system not only has remote mobile phone parking function, but also expands the trajectory reverse parking from 50 meters to 200 meters, and adds a memory route function, which can store up to 10 parking paths.
BMW has strong competitiveness in the high-performance electric vehicle market. M division’s tuning not only brings better experiences for products, but also has certain brand premiums. In recent years, BMW has accumulated a very deep high-performance user base in the Chinese market through the establishment of M Elite Training Camps, and can also open up channels for subsequent high-performance electric vehicles.
The innovative BMW iX xDrive 40, “basic” is not its only label
Compared with the first-to-enter the Chinese market innovative BMW iX xDrive 50 model, the selling price of the 40 model has been reduced by 100,000 yuan. From the selling price, we can directly think that the configuration of this basic model must have been reduced a lot. However, after a detailed look at the configuration of the 40 model, you will find that it still has all the core competitiveness of the iX family.
The innovative BMW iX is positioned as the flagship smart car in the BMW product line, and in terms of smart configuration, the basic version of the 40 model is almost all standard. Its standard features include self-repairing intelligent front grille, adjustable full-view panoramic sunroof, the all-new BMW iDrive8.0 system, an integrated suspended curved surface screen, 5G, Autonomous Driving Assistant Pro system, and 23 luxury configurations.
Nowadays, the smart car market has made 3 screens a standard feature, and some even boast five or seven screens to demonstrate their leading position in the intelligent field. However, except for drivers needing screens to access information and control the vehicle, the in-car screens are not a necessity for other passengers. When passengers pick up their own smartphones in front of the in-car screen, it’s time to rethink how to interpret intelligence.
The grounding point of intelligence in the automotive cockpit should be more convenient human-computer interaction logic, and the in-car screen is just an interactive medium. There are three popular intelligent cockpit interaction methods: voice, touch, buttons, and gestures. Engineers and designers need to consider providing the best interaction method for scenario demands and incorporating the screen into it. Merely increasing the screen size is meaningless.
Innovatively, the BMW iX model reduces the number of physical buttons in the car by about 50% and is the first BMW model to incorporate an integrated floating curved screen. The 12.3-inch instrument panel and the 14.9-inch touch central display screen are merged into one. Both have a resolution of 200 pixels per inch (ppi), bringing rich lighting effects and a better visual experience, while also featuring a frameless design and anti-glare display technology.
Screen size, placement, and angle all affect the interaction of information between people and cars, and BMW conducts over 70 surveys globally each year to listen to feedback from millions of users. Through careful design, the display screen is tilted about 6 degrees toward the driver, reflecting BMW’s classic “driver-oriented” interior design concept.
The new generation iDrive system still retains physical operating methods, not as a nostalgic attitude but as the best solution for blind operation of the car system under driving conditions. The central console uses high-end wood materials, and the familiar iDrive control knob is decorated with dazzling glass, with delicate touch and quality that can fully display BMW’s taste and differentiated understanding of interaction logic.“`markdown
The BMW Group is also incorporating more innovative technology into its new generation of electric vehicles during its electrification transformation. In addition to “sport,” “technology” has been a label that BMW has been trying to deepen in the hearts of users in recent years. A basic version of the innovative BMW xDrive 40, which comes with all technology configurations as standard, allows more consumers to access cutting-edge BMW technology at a lower cost, which is helpful in establishing a new label.
Conclusion
User demand has opened the door to the high-end electric vehicle market, but this is only the first step in building a complete market system. In the future, more car companies, like BMW, will need to bring more diverse products to users. When more products reach users, we can see the true potential of this segmented market.
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This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.